Year: 2026
Type: editorial
Abstract: The sensorial revolution in archaeology "I would be interested to hear how you think the sensorial revolution in archaeology is progressing." 1 This query was sent to me a couple of years ago by David Howes, the leading proponent of the transdisciplinary field of sensory studies.I didn't have the courage to reply that, despite a growing corpus 2 , there is no sensorial revolution or 'turn' in archaeology.Yannis Hamilakis's bold call for "a paradigmatic shift based on sensoriality" 3 has not transpired.Most archaeologists continue to work and think primarily through the sense of sight.They remain less comfortable exploring other sensory dimensions of the material world, including touch, sound, smell, taste, proprioception (where we feel the position and movement of our bodies in space), the emotions and their synaesthetic interplay.Furthermore, many archaeologists would probably argue that past sensory experiences, perceptions and orders lie beyond the reach of acceptable, rigorous archaeological method and inference.Christopher Tilley's phenomenological archaeology-out of which sensory archaeology has, in part, evolved-was certainly received in this way: criticised, for example, for incautiously imposing individual, present-day bodily experiences onto changed ancient monuments and landscapes.4 Yet, in the current issue of Antiquity, we are publishing a rigorously peer-reviewed article by Matthias Friedrich on 'Archaeology and sensory regimes in medieval and Early Modern Europe'.This would appear to confirm that sensory studies are gaining traction and diversifying in archaeology.Nevertheless, as more archaeologists gradually become interested in the senses, critical debate, methodological rigour and interpretative caution remain appropriate.Below, I take this discussion further, first, by briefly introducing the field of sensory archaeology, then by undertaking a sensorial evaluation of research
Source: Antiquity
Author: Robin Skeates
Language: English
Subfield: Anthropology
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $3,550
OpenAlex ID: W7154156142
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